Okay, maybe it’s simply because I’m getting older… But, it seems to me that more and more single women are buying their first homes at an earlier age. My last two home buyer transactions were with young women who recently graduated from college and are employed in their career of choice. Each of them recognized that purchasing a townhouse or condo was a much wiser investment than returning to apartment living after college graduation.
There are common themes in their home preferences: proximity to the Vinings and Buckhead areas for entertainment, convenience to major highways to ease the Atlanta commute and, young and fresh designer trends and colors. In short, they want a property that echoes their lifestyles – not their parents. And, certainly not their grandparents!
The floor plan is also important to these single women. Being young, they need the social and financial security of roommates. The young women buyers, however, want the bedrooms to offer privacy; preferably divided by the common living area. A two-bedroom two-bath condo priced under $200,000 is not ideal if the secondary bedroom shares a common wall with the master suite. And, scooting across the hall from the secondary bedroom to get to the bathroom is not conducive to attracting a roommate.
At some level (usually parental) security is an issue. Gated communities are attractive features.
I discovered that parking lots did not rank lower than private garages. Remember, these first-time buyers are accustomed to campus and apartment living. If you have never had the luxury of bringing in groceries without getting drenched in a downpour, a garage is simply, “Oh, that might be nice.” Same thing goes for stairs… I’m not at all interested in climbing flights of stairs on a daily basis; or, hauling bags of groceries (much less a sofa) up stairs. But, then… we’ve already established that I’m old.
What I do know – as a mother, an older woman, a Realtor – is these young first-time home buyers must have buyer representation. Yes, they will have parental advice; however, parents generally don’t have the experience in real estate to fully protect the interests of their children. It always surprises me when buyers attempt to “go at it alone” because of the possibility of mistakes. A good Realtor is invaluable to a buyer, and can be the difference between a wonderful transaction, and a nightmare.
